Yes, the lists are set to "Update column for add/remove."
And I definitely gave the new lists the same name as before. Not only that, but I created 2 brand new "test" reading lists with names not previously used, and when I add books to them, the corresponding tags are NOT being added to Calibre anymore. Apparently, reconstructing the library somehow "broke" things, but I don't know how to fix it.
In addition to adding brand new "test" lists, other things I've tried are rebooting my PC; reinstalling (repairing) Calibre; uninstalling the plugin, then restarting calibre, then reinstalling the plugin. I also did a Calibre database integrity check and it found no major problems. Upon letting Calibre check the files against the database, it did find extra jpegs in some of the folders, but I had Calibre delete them and it made no difference. It's a mystery to me.